Day 58

Today it has officially been 2 months! I can't believe it's already been that long. I look back at my pictures from those first few weeks and I cant believe how far I've come. Not only do I look physically different, but I feel better and am so happy with my straight face. Someone asked me the other day if knowing now how hard the recovery was, would I do it over again? The answer is yes, 100% yes.

At my 2 month post op, Simon the resident walked in and exclaimed "yay, it's my favorite patient!" Can you tell I was always teacher's pet? He said I looked great and that the swelling looks non-existent to an outsider. We then measured how far I can open my mouth and I'm up to 33mm! I've been slacking on my exercises the past few weeks so I should have progressed farther but as long as I can get to 41mm by my next appointment in 5 weeks then I'm good.

The doc then told me I can start eating "very tender chicken". Sooo pretty much the same stuff I've been eating. I need to cool it with the mashed potatoes and fried Oreos (damn you Tina!) or I'm going to gain back everything I lost.

Sadly, today was Simon the resident's last day of his rotation. I am really sad to see him go. He really was a huge help throughout this whole process. I gave him a hug when I left and I think I caught him a little off guard. What can I say, I'm a hugger.

Day 56

Tons of comments today from people at work saying that my swelling looks almost gone. Apparently during my first two weeks back at the office it was strange for them because I didn't look like myself. But now I do!

I've been noticing a few things lately:
1) my left jaw joint hurst when I stretch my mouth during exercising or eating a big scoop of mashed potatoes.
2) my back teeth are starting to get really sensitive
3) my right jaw joint clicks but the left is click free

Hopefully my post op appointment in a few days will clear up some of these questions. I will also have a full adjustment at the orthodontist next week followed by a cleaning at the dentist. I've never been more excited for the dentist. The Peridex rinse I had to use for 6 weeks stained my teeth . They aren't any funky colors or anything but it just looks like I don't brush them and they are yellow. Ive been told this will go away with a general cleaning. This whole surgery process will make you appreciate dental hygiene more than you ever thought possible!

Day 53

The past few days have been awesome! I started sleeping more on my side which is so much more comfortable! My week went by pretty fast with work being crazy (important people were in town) and school. Then Friday I did back to back workouts at the gym (ouch, I hurt now). I am amazed at how much my energy and strength has come back just in the past 2-3 weeks. I may not be as strong as I was but I am no longer shaking after I workout.

Later that night my twin arrived!!! Now, she's not actually my twin but she is one of my best friends and we are twins on the inside. She is going to live with me for a month and I couldn't be happier. Since she is from DC and has never really experienced Texas living, I took her to the Houston Rodeo's chili cook off and we had a blast! I could even eat! They had super finely chopped brisket, mashed potatoes, and even pudding, it's like they knew I was coming! Naturally we had to indulge in a fried Twinkie at some point....the ultimate desert on a soft food diet :-)

We ran into a few friends who hadn't seen me since before surgery and they said I looked good. I told them I looked especially sexy on day 4 and 21 and they had missed out by not seeing me then haha.

Day 50

Today I had 3 people tell me it looked the swelling was completely gone! I know it's not but it was nice to know that I look normal to the naked eye! The swelling is still there in my lower left jaw and a little bit in my cheeks. I can barely feel it anymore except for my nose which is still tight from my upper lip to the top of my nose.

I've been slacking on my jaw exercises lately. I did about an hour today and it really hurts to push my jaw to the right and forward. I'm hoping to ask my surgeon about it next week and see if I can expect it to get better.

My soft foods diet has gotten creative this past week. Baked beans and eggs for breakfast, shredded chicken with mashed potatoes, and did I mention.....girl scout cookie milkshakes! I even managed to eat bread: Chikfila (oh I miss it) comes by our office in the morning twice a week and the guy always forgets that I can't eat. Well he forced me to take a breakfast sandwich so after giving the chicken to someone else, I managed to eat the roll! It was the first time I've eaten bread in 7 weeks! Little victories...

On a side note, I had turtle soup at a work lunch today. Most of you probably have a look of disgust on your face but don't knock it until you try it. After 7 weeks of the same soups, turtle soup was a nice change :-)

Day 47

There are a a lot of jaw surgery blogs out there but not everyone has the same experiences. As a comparison, i've made a list things I have and have not experienced:

What didn't happen:

No breaking elastics
No bleeding out my nose
No syringe eating
Liquid diet actually not that bad

Things I did experience:

My nose kinda feels like its broken
Surgery site Infection
Only minimal drooling
Chipmunk cheeks
Jowls

I also ran my first hash run yesterday! I had to tread lightly and could still feel a little pounding in my face as my feet hit the ground. I was worried that it would really hurt but instead, I twisted my bad ankle that morning and it hurt so much I forgot about my face. In light of this, I will now share with you how I got my hash name:

Hash names are given to you by the entire group after you do something stupid. They are sometimes vulgar enough that you would never tell your mother what your name is. Well, 2 years ago my accident proneness was in full force and I may or may not visited the ER 5 times in 27 days... These visits included stomach viruses, a botched spinal tap, and then a face plant into the concrete where I knocked myself unconscious. So after showing up to the hash run with a black eye and a laundry list acquired injuries....I was named "Mississippi Housewife". Yesterday even though I was in pain because of my ankle, I couldn't admit it to the group for fear of being forced to chug an entire beer out of punishment for living up to my name lol.

Day 43

Happy Valentines day everyone! The past few days have been about the same. I really don't notice much of a change in my swelling anymore. I know it is going down but i think it is so slow that I don't notice it. I have noticed that I am getting more movement back in my top lip and it no longer looks like a fat whale. The left side still sticks to my braces a bit but not nearly as bad as 2 weeks ago. I've started taking pictures of myself every few days and making ridiculous faces just to see how much my face moves. Check out my kissy face :-)

I also slept on the side of my face again last night. It must be getting better if this doesn't hurt that much anymore.

In food news today I have learned that a crockpot is one of the best things you can purchase for phase 2 of your post-op diet. I made a huge pot of pulled pork that I can put on baked potatoes! It's like eating REAL food! The meat comes out so soft that chewing-challenged folks like myself can actually eat it. Our office is having cake today for valentines day and I so happy I will actually be able to participate this time. At the last office party I just had to watch everyone, it was very sad...

Day 40

Its been 40 days and 40 nights guys...does this count as giving something up for lent? I think I should get credit for this, what do you think?

I noticed last night that its starting to get a little less uncomfortable when I sleep; I even found myself sleeping on my right side. That is the side that is less swollen. In my sleepy stupor I somehow found a way to keep most of the weight above my temple so as to keep the weight off my cheek. I still don't think it's good to sleep on the side of my face just yet but I have no control what I do in the name of sleep at 2 am.

Baked potatoes are definitely my new favorite soft food! I stocked up at the store today and even looked up a few recipes for the crockpot. I was so excited about my baked potatoes and BBQ beef this weekend that I may just try and recreate it at home :-) my crockpot is currently working on pulled pork. Finally, i can eat meat that hasn't been run through a blender! Details of my impending crockpot successes to come...

I made it through a whole workout today ( ok, maybe 75%). The coach wouldn't let me do box jumps out of fear that I would fall and re-break my face but I did get to sweat it out with endless rowing, squats and lunges. Needless to say I look less than glamorous in todays picture but at least I feel better.

Day 38

Happy Saturday everyone! The past 2 days have been filled with lots of progress! My mobility and eating has been progressing extremely fast. It's as if as soon as the doctor said I could eat mushy foods I just ran with it! A lot of people have asked me how much weight I lost because of the surgery and liquid diet. After 4 weeks I was down 15 pounds. Guys that go though this seem to lose much more but fortunately for us women folk, we lose at a much slower rate. 15 lbs is still a lot but it has slowed. I can consume enough calories now ( with the help of potatoes and cans of chef boyardee) that my weight has stabilized. In fact, today I managed to scarf down a breakfast burrito sans tortilla, a gigantic baked potato with minced meat and about 17 chocolate muffins. At this rate I may be the first person to GAIN weight with a broken jaw. Again, I blame Tina.

I also worked out 2 days this week and I noticed how weak I got. I used to be one of the strongest girls in my Crossfit class...now I'm one of the weakest. On a side note: I must remember to be more careful with moving objects. I was doing twists with a 10 lb plate and hit myself smack in the nose. It did NOT feel good!

Below are pictures from yesterday and today along with a side profile picture. Take a look at the pre-op profile and this one. It's crazy how its changed, I definitely happy with the new profile so far!

Day 36

Swelling is continuously going down thank goodness! Several people have even commented on it. At this rate maybe ill look normal by spring break! I noticed some new feeling today. In my left cheek it felt like pins and needles. I wonder if my nerves are waking up and maybe I'm starting to get the rest of my feeling back. I've heard that it happens suddenly so maybe this is it?

When I smile now, you can actually see my top teeth! It will be nice when my full smile returns instead of stopping at my cheeks. People who don't know my face is broken probably think I'm giving fake smiles. Someone actually asked me what was wrong the other day and told me I looked sad. I had to hurriedly explain " no, I'm not upset, that's just my face" :-/

On the food front: I ate fish yesterday! This is was my most exciting news all week! Mashed potatoes and milkshakes are good but its nice to eat actual protein. Only 4 months 2 weeks and 6 days until i can eat steak....My friends were also really sweet the other day: they had plans to go to my favorite pizza place but made sure only to go once once i left. they know its my favorite so they didn't want to torture me. I love that everyone is so considerate. I think they will be just as excited as I will be when I can eat real food again! I apologize in advance for the 5lbs everyone will be gaining when I start celebrating my return to chewing.

Day 34

Today was another fun filled day of work and school (if I had my full range of facial expressions back I would be making a sarcasm face right now FYI). One of the negative side effects of not being able to eat properly is the fact that I can't regulate my body temperature. I am freezing all the time! It has been 70 degrees in Texas and yet I am wearing sweaters to keep warm. On the bright side, it was a perfect excuse to eat KFC mashed potatoes and gravy for lunch :-)

I then had a good visit at the orthodontists office today. He was excited to see me because he loves seeing the surgery patients progress. Having a great ortho who works closely with your surgeon is a definite must. They talk frequently and keep each other in the loop. Today's orthodontic updates:
~ he put a chain on my 2 front teeth to close my gap ( it was completely closed in 45 minutes!)
~ in 4 weeks he will replace my bottom wire and work on getting my lower bite in order because my back teeth don't touch in the right places yet
~ I only have to wear my elastics 8 hrs a day at night
~ he estimates that my surgeon will keep my retainer in for another 4 months
~ he won't worry about fixing my upper teeth and bite until the bottom is in the right place and my top jaw is completely healed/retainer removed
~ I should have my braces off in the next 7-9 months!!!!! That is 6 month ahead of schedule

I have decided that when the braces come off, I'm having a party. There will be party hats...and shots. You are all invited.

I also had a little emotional moment over my ridiculously large bowl of mashed potatoes today. I started thinking ahead to when I get my braces off and the swelling is gone and my face is straight... All these trials and tribulations will wrap up and I'm going to have an end product. I will no longer be a 26 year old with braces, my face will be straight and it won't break my heart anymore when I look at pictures and see a crooked smile. This whole process has been rough but I can honestly say that I don't regret any of it and it is going to be SO worth it!

Day 33

So the last few days I really feel like the swelling is getting better every day. Even people at work noticed. Or maybe it's just that we are all used to my chipmunk cheeks now...I'm going to choose to believe the former.

I was also more adventurous with my mushy foods diet. It feels so good to at least have something resembling normal food in my stomach. At brunch with a friend, I ordered a side of hash browns and mixed them up with scrambled eggs and cheese, it was heaven! I've also been treating myself to chocolate milkshakes the past few days. I probably will need to stop that or I might be the first jaw surgery post op to actually gain weight on a restricted diet haha. I blame Tina.

My left lip has really been bothering me lately. It is still puffier than the rest of my mouth so it sticks to my braces. I finally caved and put wax on the brackets. I'm going to the orthodontist tomorrow where he will be replacing my wire ( because they cut it during surgery). I'm excited because my teeth look ridiculous right now. I have huge gaps between my top teeth because they widened my top jaw. Now that my mouth isn't as delicate, the ortho will actually be able to start working his magic again.

Day 31

Excellent day today! Swelling is down a fraction and I was feeling good today. Over the past few days I have had two milkshakes...through a straw!! I also ate crab cakes last night and it only took 20 minutes. After a successful shoe shopping trip with the mama lady (post surgery presents to yourself are a must) we went to lunch. I ordered macaroni and cheese but the noodles were too al-dente so I had to get mashed potatoes instead. I had them but cheese on top and boy oh by they were amazing! It is so nice to have some normal food in my stomach again. Mashed potatoes and milkshakes...it could be worse right?!

I also did yoga AND went back to the gym yesterday. It was a lower body lifting day: I took it easy and went very light and i still struggled. It's crazy how much muscle you can lose in a few weeks. My dead lift went down 35 pounds! Even though I'm hurting today it feels good to be active again.

Well I'm off to see my hash friends (for those of you who are unfamiliar with this term, google hash house harriers). One day when I'm back to running, I will explain to you how I got my hash name...